Constitutional
Law I
Section
10
University
of Iowa College of Law
Iowa
City, Iowa
Nicholas
Johnson
Spring
2003
December 28, 2002; revised 20021231, 20030106, 20030107, 20030109, 20030110, 20030122, 20030124, 20030126, 20030202, 20030203, 20030215, 20030221, 20030308.
1. We meet Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, 10:20-11:50 a.m., Room 125 BLB, from January 14 through April 23, 2003 (with the exception of March 18 and 19 during spring break week, March 15-23, 2002).
2. The text we will be using is Kathleen M. Sullivan and Gerald Gunther, Constitutional Law (Foundation Press, 14th ed., 2001).
3. The first section of readings will be pp. 1-29, 68-75, and Appendix A p. 7. Assume that we will normally be covering 10-15 pages an hour -- 15-20 pages per meeting. See "Reading Assignments" for readings during the remainder of the semester. The "Resource" Web page contains links to online material you may find useful.
Questions to address while reading, and preparing for class discussion, the interstate commerce clause cases may help make that material a little easier going. Link to "Interstate Commerce Clause Cases."
Note in this connection that I have prepared and make available to you a course outline. You need not be concerned that I have, thereby, deprived you of the learning involved in preparing your own. It is just a skeleton, drawn from the Sullivan and Gunther detailed table of contents, that contains only the assigned material, and in the order in which we will be covering it. Because it is formatted as an MSWord "outline," however, it will enable you to make your own insertions as we progress -- as well as constantly to have before you a view of the entire semester. Just go to http://www.uiowa.edu/~cyberlaw/cnl03/outline.doc. On the assumption you have MSWord on your computer, you will be prompted to either "Save" or "Open" the document. Choose "Save" and it's transferred to your hard drive (or wherever else you want it).
Of course, you need not use this outline. It is not a requirement. Prepare and use whatever works for you. I may, however, later in the semester, ask to see a copy of whatever you are preparing by way of a synthesis of your notes.
4. As you know, because this is a "small writing section" it is essentially two courses (both of which are required for credit). (a) Upon successful completion of the one that meets Monday's and Tuesdays, you earn three academic credits, and a grade based upon your performance on a final exam over the reading and other material, your class participation, and the requirements of the "second course." (2) The other earns you two additional credits, and involves your researching, writing and revising a number of writing assignments and holding a couple of one-on-one conferences with me. The authoritative source for any questions about the details of the small writing section requirements is the University of Iowa College of Law Student Handbook 2002-2003, especially pp. 13-17.
For insight into the standards I'm looking for in writing generally, check out the "Cyberspace Law Seminar, Spring 2003, Writing Assignments" page. While this is focused on seminar research papers, much to most of its contents will be useful guidance for you as well.
For comments of some general relevance to your writing, in the form of feedback on the January 22 Marbury quiz, see "Marbury Quiz Feedback."
Writing schedule. As per the small section requirements, there will be three writing assignments. (1) The first problem was posted to this Web site the morning of January 24. You are a law clerk asked to to write a seven-page memo to the judge for whom you work. You have two weeks (i.e., until noon of Friday, February 7) to turn your finished paper in to Ms. Bruce. Conferences regarding those papers will be scheduled during the week of February 10. Edited copies of your papers will be returned to you at that time. (2) The second assignment involves your rewrite of that paper. See, in this connection, the "General Reactions" and ("assignment") Web page for guidance. The deadline for submission of the rewrite to Ms. Bruce is noon of Friday, February 21.
To aid you with the third assignment, and as feedback in addition to the personal memo you've received on the first, one of the better student papers is now available with my annotations designed to highlight qualities you may wish to copy or from which you might otherwise wish to learn.
(3) The third assignment will involve the research and writing of a 15-page appellate brief. You will have nearly three weeks. The problem will be distributed to you February 21. Your finished brief is due to Ms. Bruce by noon of Wednesday, March 12. Conferences will be scheduled the week of March 24. This schedule is designed to leave you free of Con Law assignments during spring break week, give me that week to work on the briefs, and get the writing behind you by April -- thereby freeing you to put in more time preparing for finals.
The reason for turning papers in to Ms. Bruce is so that she can assign numbers to you and your paper and I can evaluate them anonymously to the maximum extent possible. (Obviously, that is not possible for the rewrite following a one-on-one conference.) For that reason, you should not put your name on your papers.
Note in this connection that you will have four legal bibliography sessions, 2:20-3:20 p.m., January 21-24, 2003. Legal Bib is, from my perspective, about one-third of everything you have to learn in law school. This is because it is not only essential to the research and writing you will be doing in this small section, but because it is central to what distinguishes young lawyers doing research once in practice. If you know where to go to do your research and your opponent does not, if you can complete the research project in two hours that it takes him two days to do, if you can find the innovative approach that she misses, if you know their leading case has been overruled and they don't -- you get the idea. Legal Bib is the secret to that success (on the assumption it will be taught the way I assume, and hope, it will be).
These sessions will deal with printed materials. I have deliberately arranged to schedule your Westlaw/Lexis training after spring break. I do not want you to use Westlaw/Lexis before then. You will, someday, thank me for this. It is important that you learn to use the books before you start playing with the electronic materials and services. (1) You may well some day find yourself in a situation where there is no access to Westlaw/Lexis (or an inability of your clients, or employers, to pay for it). (2) There are still some things between book covers that are simply not available from Westlaw/Lexis. (3) You will be a more efficient and effective user of Westlaw/Lexis if you have firmly in mind the hardcover materials, and research techniques, for which they are a substitute.
Friday of the first week of the semester, January 17, 2003, you are required to attend a "Program on Plagiarism and Effective Legal Writing," at 12:40 p.m. in Levitt Auditorium. Plagiarism is not just the knowing, unethical use of others' material, passing it off as your own, without quotes or credits. It can also result from some wholly innocent conduct on your part as a result of ignorance regarding the full reach of what constitutes plagiarism. You fail to understand this at your peril. Be there.
This program is put on by Ms. Nancy Jones of the Writing Center (BLB 480). The Writing Center is a wonderful resource, and I definitely encourage you to pay it a visit to get acquainted. When and how you use it for your writing asisgnments in this course, however, is something that will be covered later. (Some of the writing you do is to be yours alone, without outside assistance.)
Let me also bring to your attention, if you are not aware of it, the very useful resource provided by Ms. Martha Peters and her "Academic Achievement Center" (BLB 189). This goes double if you feel like you didn't do as well as you thought you would during the last semester. She will provide one-on-one counselling and suggestions as well as her more formal programs that you should find of real assistance.
5. Your first assignments for the seminar are (1) to provide me (at njohnson@inav.net) your preferred e-mail address (please do that now), and (2) to write a one-page personal biographical statement. Use the description of the assignment from my Cyberspace Law Seminar site. This is due by January 20. A hardcopy booklet of bios will be shared with other seminar participants, but will not be Web-posted. You may, but need not, look at samples of prior years' student bios.
6. Coordinates:My office is in Room 446. Feel free to stop in any time I'm there; the door is literally as well as figuratively open. (Of course, you may make appointments if you prefer; it's just not necessary to do so.) The phone there is 335-9146. A better phone number for voice messages is 337-5555, my home office number with an answering machine. The e-mail address, noted above, is <njohnson@inav.net>. My personal, all-purpose Web site is at <http://www.nicholasjohnson.org>. The best postal address is: Box 1876, Iowa City IA 52244-1876. The law school fax number I use is 335-9019. (All phone numbers are, of course, in the 319 area code.)
E-mail is probably the best option for communicating with me. But because a student once lodged a formal complaint with the Ombuds when I had not responded to their e-mail in under four hours, I should put you on notice that even e-mail has its limitations if you need a really rapid response. All of my multiple e-mail accounts get dumped into the "inav" address, above, which is then coordinated and administered from my home office during the very early morning hours and early evenings. Moreover, like you, I cannot promise that there will never be an occasion when you have to wait more than 24 hours. Often there are a couple hundred e-mails waiting when I log in. Sometimes I'm out of town or otherwise unable to check. On rare occasions I even have things to do in my life that do not involve a computer monitor and keyboard. But most of the time you'll have a reply in less than a day.
My assistant for the seminar is Julianne Bruce. Her office is Room 433. Her phone number is 335-9212. Her e-mail is <julianne-bruce@uiowa.edu>. If you're unable to reach me directly you should feel free to leave paper drafts or otherwise communicate with me through her if you wish.
7. Professionalism and Deadlines: Although not a part of your academic grade, your professors and colleagues necessarily are evaluating you from day one regarding your professionalism. "Is this student someone I could recommend for a clerkship with a federal judge, or as a new associate in a top quality law firm?" It is strongly recommended, if you have not already read it, that you read “So You Want to be a Lawyer: A Play in Four Acts” (also available on the Web from http://www.nicholasjohnson.org (click "Enter Here," then scroll down to the link)). There will be a quiz over this piece at our first class meeting. Among those professional qualities are the time management skills that enable you to produce quality work product before it is due, rather than at the last minute or even after a deadline has passed.
Of course, a failure to meet deadlines will be a part of your academic grade.
8. Exams, Grades: To provide the instructor and students with feedback and incentives, there may be (with advance notice) brief quizzes. The final exam is currently scheduled for Friday, May 9, 2003, at 1:00 p.m. (It is, of course, your responsibility to confirm time and place as the day approaches.) The final will be a two hour (total) (a) closed book short answer or multiple-choice exam followed by (b) an open book essay exam.
There is available to you a sample student answer to a prior year's constitutional law essay question by this instructor, along with a brief commentary about that answer.
Ten percent of the grade for the class (as distinguished from the writing) will be based on class participation. The overall course grade will be made up of the class and writing grades in the same proportion as the credit hours (3 plus 2): 60 percent class and 40 percent writing. Grades for the writing will be allocated (using "40" rather than "100" as the total): initial draft of writing assignment, 8 percent; rewrite of writing assignment, 7 percent; brief writing assignment 20 percent; oral presentation 5 percent.
9. Attendance: You are urged to make the effort to be prepared for, attend, and participate in every class. The ABA, AALS and College of Law rules require students to be in "regular attendance." For this course, "regular attendance" will be 82 per cent (23 of the 28 class sessions). There are no "excused" or "unexcused" absences, just absences. You get five of them and, therefore, are encouraged to save the permitted absences for any emergencies at the end of the semester as participants attending less than 23 class sessions may be dropped.
10. Taping: Class sessions are videotaped. Those doing the taping make every effort to avoid focusing the camera on students, although students' voices are recorded. The sole purpose of the taping is as a convenience to students who are unavoidably absent and would like to view them. They are available for no other purpose, then only by prior arrangement with the instructor (from whom they are available), and they are wiped after the semester is concluded.
11. Reservation:
An effort will be made to provide advance notice of assignments and exams,
respond to reasonable suggestions, and minimize changes. But the
instructor reserves the right to make changes believed to be of benefit
to students.